How Do Marijuana Laws Fare in the 50 States?

This quick reference guide, from Thrillist, gives you a peek into the marijuana laws of each of the 50 states and their progress toward legal weed. Read on…

RED STATES, BLUE STATES, PURPLE STATES… the one thing most of us who are not Jeff Sessions can agree on in 2018 is the need for more green states on the map. Support for marijuana legalization this year hit an all-time high (puns!) with nearly two-thirds of Americans favoring broad recreational legalization. Happily, states are moving pot laws forward, and they’re moving them fast.

Seven years ago medical marijuana was legal in only 17 states and the District of Columbia; recreational marijuana was legal in zero states and zero Districts of Columbia. Today, medical marijuana programs are on the books in 29 states, and the nine best states allow for some degree of recreational use. For years the West Coast set the pace, but now New England is making serious moves toward legal weed — and even some red states, where GOP politicians are seeing the tax windfall enjoyed by trailblazers (more puns!) like Colorado and Washington, are suddenly of the opinion that marijuana is not so bad.

Welcome to the State of the Weed Union 2018, your one-stop shop for everything you need to know about which states are stacking hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue by legalizing and/or not paying to imprison non-violent drug users, and which states are… not. As voters and state legislatures adapt, we’ll update this story and the map accordingly.

Before we light up here, a quick primer on some terminology — don’t worry, this isn’t for a test, unless you count the possibility that you misjudge your state’s weed laws and do in fact end up in prison. In that sense yes it is for a test.

RECREATIONAL

Nine states and DC have, to varying degrees, seen the light and allowed residents to get lit. But contrary to what at least one of you currently reading this believes, “legal” recreational weed does not mean, like, fully and unconditionally legalized blazing in the streets in front of God and everyone. Usually it means if you are over the age of 21, it’s fine to keep modest amounts on your person or in your home, maybe grow some plants, and occasionally smoke in public. You might recognize such rules in your dealings with a similar legal recreational substance, “alcohol.”

MEDICINAL

Twenty-nine states have medical marijuana programs, but not all are currently operational and some only cover a limited range of medical conditions. Many states without medical legislation still allow for limited use of CBD — aka Cannabidiol, the cannabis compound that has a huge variety of medical properties but is not psychoactive (i.e. it doesn’t get you high, unlike its better-known counterpart THC). CBD is widely used to help manage epilepsy and ease symptoms of conditions such as anxiety, cancer, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, and nausea.

ILLEGAL

Yeah. Nah. Pretty straightforward.

DECRIMINALIZED

Decriminalized basically just means no jail time. A state hasn’t fully legalized recreational marijuana, but it has made possession of small amounts (usually 1 ounce or less) punishable by, at worst, a fine. Some states still classify it as a misdemeanor, but removing the threat of incarceration is an important step, since for years this country has been throwing people in prison for carrying as little as a single joint — with black Americans four times likelier to be arrested as white ones, despite equal rates of marijuana usage. Some decriminalized states also have medical marijuana programs.

Alabama — Illegal

Starting off on the opposite of a high note (last joke, I swear), possession of literally one single joint in Alabama is punishable up by to a year in prison. These days, a lot of people are arrested and charged with possession but few are actually convicted — those who are convicted, though, are overwhelmingly black men. A medical marijuana program would be an excellent way for Alabama to begin making reparations for Jeff Sessions (born: Selma; died: TBD), but don’t hold your breath. Carly’s Law does permit low-extract CBD (meaning it contains less than 3% THC) to treat severe epilepsy in children age 5 or younger.

Alaska — Recreational

The fourth state to legalize recreational weed, right alongside Oregon and DC back in 2014. The caveats: You have to be 21 or older to buy from dispensaries, and the legislation only allows for possession of 1 ounce or less. Any more than that is a misdemeanor; 4 ounces or more is a felony. No growing more than three mature plants (no more than six total). No smoking in public, either.

Arizona — Medicinal

“I started smoking my sophomore year of high school, around 2009. At that time my parents weren’t together and my father lived across the country in Arizona. Yet somehow he had a hunch that I’d started to dabble with marijuana, so he told my mom to search my room. Of course I’d dropped a dime bag under my bed, which led to me taking and obviously failing a drug test, which led to my mom shipping me off to Arizona in the middle of the school year to live with my father. Oh, and a few weeks later my sister got caught and there were no repercussions.” — Anonymous

It remains a straight felony in Arizona to possess any amount of recreational weed, but the state does have a robust medical-cannabis economy, with around 130 dispensaries serving some 160,000 patients. Patients with any of a dozen or so conditions — such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, and chronic pain — can legally possess up to 2.5 ounces. Arizona also recently became the 35th state to legalize hemp (containing 0.3% THC or less).

Arkansas — Medicinal (not yet operational)

So Arkansas technically has a legal medical marijuana program, but actually enacting it has been a hugely dramatic ordeal and as of this writing it remains more or less in limbo. In theory, once the program is operational the state should have up to 32 dispensaries licensed to treat patients with a wide range of medical conditions. When it comes to recreational usage, though, possession of 4 ounces or less is a misdemeanor for first-time offenders; after that, (or if you get caught with more than 4 ounces, whether it’s your first time or not) possession is a felony charge.

California — Recreational

“When I moved from New York City to San Francisco two years ago, I was totally unprepared for how mainstream and normalized weed culture was here. I grew up in 1970s Marin County, California, so it’s not like I hadn’t been around weed, but there was always an air of illegality about it that is TOTALLY gone now.

Literally the first party I went to was a cocktail party full of folks like me — upstanding parents approaching middle age. The host welcomed us in and said, ‘Hi! Food is over there, drinks are on that table, and edibles over there.’ No biggie.

Later that year we had a dinner party and most guests brought bottles of wine. Then one came in and, after dumping his coat said, ‘Hey — brought you this. It’s from our neighbor up at our house in Mendocino,’ and handed me a jar of large, very potent-looking buds.” — Ocean MacAdams

For my birthday one year, when I was at school in California, a friend used his medicinal card (sickle cell anemia; he was very* ill**) to get me a brownie I was told would get me weird for about six hours. I ate just two-thirds of the thing and was high for — and this is factual — a day and a half. Have you ever been high on one single thing for a day and a half? Like, after a certain point I had shit to do. I had to meet with a TA. (*not **remotely ill in any way.)

Afroman was born here, and it’s more normal to bring edibles to a dinner party than a bottle of wine, yet it is still a misdemeanor to sell any amount of recreational weed in Cali. Still, it’s legal for adults 21 or older to possess up to 1 ounce and to grow as many as six plants. As for California’s medical marijuana program, you can grow as many plants as it takes to meet your individual medical needs.

Colorado — Recreational

I lived in Colorado for a full 18 years and all of them were before the state legalized in 2012. I resent this, because I was not cool in high school and did not know cool people from whom I could acquire supercool drugs like weed. These days, you can drive down Broadway and pass a dispensary like every 10 seconds. Today’s children will never know the struggle.

Legally you gotta be 21 or older to possess your allotted quantity of recreational marijuana (1 ounce). But it is legal to transfer it (i.e. share it around with friends for no financial compensation), which is not necessarily the case in other states. Those using it for a medical condition can have up to 2 ounces, plus grow up to six plants (three of them mature).

Connecticut — Medicinal and Decriminalized

Ugh, Connecticut did come close to legalizing recreational weed but ultimately put it off, probably for at least another year. Still, the state has already taken the crucial step of decriminalizing it for very small amounts. Possession of a half-ounce or less is punishable by a fine of $150 (first offense) or $500 (subsequent offenses) but no jail time. Growing or distributing herb remains a felony. Connecticut is the only state whose medical marijuana legislation excludes minors, which is a bummer, but that nonsense is expected to change later on in 2018. And on the plus side, the tiny state has nine medical dispensaries that serve more than 25,000 patients.

Delaware — Medicinal and Decriminalized

Fully legalized recreational marijuana is proving to be kind of a journey for Delaware, but for now at least the state has decriminalized possession of 1 ounce or less — meaning no jail time and an easy peasy fine of $100. But it’s still a criminal offense for minors to smoke, or for adults to smoke in public. The state has medical cannabis legislation allowing for possession of up to 6 ounces (no home-growing, though) and the number of registered patients has ballooned during the last two years.

Florida — Medicinal

Weird™ is already Florida’s well-established brand, but it is still not a place where you can legally Get Weird™. Recreational possession of 20 grams or less (0.7 ounces; don’t act like you knew) is a misdemeanor that can land you in prison for a year. More than 20 grams is a felony — about five years, possibly more. The state does have a medical marijuana program, but it’s not as comprehensive as what you’d find elsewhere. It’s limited to CBD — containing no more than 0.8% THC — and for only a few of conditions. Terminally ill patients can qualify for a higher level of THC, but it’s more difficult to come by. No home-growing, either. Check out Thrillist’s complete guide to how to get medicinal weed in Florida.

Georgia — Illegal

“I was driving from Auburn, Alabama, to Jacksonville, Florida, with four friends to go see the Florida-Georgia game. We were riding in a Jeep Cherokee and two pledges were in the trunk part of the SUV, on top of the luggage. If you’ve never driven through south Georgia, imagine the emptiest parts of The Walking Dead and add a sprinkle of cop cars hiding behind overgrown grass. TL;DR: we got bored. Joints were rolled up, windows were rolled down, weed was smoked. Jeep was pulled over.

The cop says he smells marijuana and puts the driver and guy in the passenger seat in the back of his squad car. He opens the trunk to search the vehicle. Two pledges fall out. Cop laughs and continues to search our stuff. He never finds the weed because the guy in the passenger seat had hidden it in his shoe, then swallowed what was left of the joint. Cop dumps all our shit on the ground and says he’s taking the two guys in his car to jail for testing unless we give up the drugs. We give up the drugs. Cop thanks us and says, “I’ll let you go since y’all are leaving the state anyway.” He pocketed the weed, helped repack our bags and pledges into the trunk, and drove off. Most worrisome 30-minute traffic stop I’ve ever been in. We didn’t get tickets, but it was still pretty expensive what with all the weed and ‘paraphernalia’ he ‘confiscated.’” — Nickolaus

Georgia’s policy is more or less the same as Florida’s, with recreational possession of 1 ounce or less corresponding to a misdemeanor charge and anything more than that to a felony. First-time offenders can usually opt for probation rather than face jail time, so that’s something. On the medical side, Georgia allows for more qualifying health conditions than Florida does, but it’s still CBD-specific. Licensed patients can have up to 20 ounces of CBD oil containing up to 5% THC. Still no home-growing. Here’s everything you need to know about weed in Georgia.

Hawaii — Medicinal

Some good news! In Hawaii recreational possession won’t get you a felony charge until you’re caught with at least a pound (though it remains a felony to sell or deliver more than 1 ounce). And first-time offenders who successfully make it through probation get a clean slate — the state will expunge their record. Hawaii has an operational medical marijuana program serving more than 20,000 patients, and those patients can grow up to seven plants, mature or otherwise.

Idaho — Illegal

Weed is, like, very illegal here. Possession of 3 ounces or less is a misdemeanor; more than 3 ounces is a felony. Since there’s no medical program on the books, those amounts correspond to the same charges whether you’re using it recreationally or not. But this libertarian-leaning state miiiiight be inching toward medical legislation. Might be. Slowly.

Illinois — Medicinal and Decriminalized

“About 12 years ago, while moving from Michigan to Oregon, I stopped in Chicago and purchased a tiny bag of weed to get me at least to South Dakota. Near the small hamlet of Edwardsville, I saw a sign that read something to the effect of ‘mandatory drug-search checkpoint ahead.’ I’d just roasted a bone in the truck and needed to pee, so I pulled into a rest stop and did my business only to return to a canine unit outside my car. A thorough search revealed … an eighth of weed and a roach. The state cop on scene was actually embarrassed watching the local cops take pictures with my tiny bag. Apparently they were looking for cocaine shipments into Chicago but hadn’t gotten any hits, and as a result were very excited to have landed… an eighth of weed and a roach. The state cop apologized about 50 times and started talking to me about The Dead because I had an old sticker on my car.” — Andy Kryza

Illinois has decriminalized recreational possession of 10 grams (0.35 ounces) or less — $200 fine, no jail time. The state’s medical program is a robust one, with more than 50 licensed dispensaries serving more than 20,000 patients with dozens of qualifying health conditions. Still no home-growing, though; five plants or fewer is a misdemeanor, and more than five is a felony. Here’s much more about weed in Illinois.

Indiana — Illegal

Indiana is basically the old curmudgeon who lives next door and keeps calling the cops on Illinois’ party. Possession of 30 grams (slightly more than 1 ounce) or less is a misdemeanor; possession of any greater amount is a felony for those with prior offenses. There’s a medical allowance for CBD containing less than 0.3% CBD, and while there are signs that expansion is on its way, for now the people of Indiana are left with one of the stricter cannabis laws in this country.

Iowa — Illegal

I have never been to Iowa and if you tell me it is a lovely place I will believe you, but it needs to get its shit together and stop demonizing medical marijuana (also any marijuana, but, y’know, gotta learn to crawl before you can… light a joint in public). Possessing any amount is a misdemeanor; growing or selling any amount is a felony. Iowa has a CBD-specific medical allowance but no actual medical marijuana legislation on the books (though 2018 could be its year). No home-growing, despite this being a land of abundant cropland and skilled farmers who could probably make a killing on this stuff.